Flint holder assembly for lighter

ABSTRACT

A holder assembly for the flint of a lighter for cigarettes, cigars, etc. has a closure member for closing the flint opening in the lighter casing and to which a flint tube housing a bias spring can be releasably fastened without the use of tools by turning the closure member from a release position into a locking position.

United States Patent FLINT HOLDER ASSEMBLY FOR LIGHTER 7 Claims, 13 Drawing Figs.

U.S. Cl 431/273 Int. Cl..... F23q 1/02 Field of Search 431/129 References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 7/1949 Horning 431/124 3/1950 Rodak 431/276 1/l953 Mariani 431/143X 8/1958 Nissen 431/276 Primary Examiner-Edward J. Michael Attorney-Heme & Baxley ABSTRACT: A holder assembly for the flint of a lighter for cigarettes, cigars, etc. has a closure member for closing the flint opening in the lighter casing and to which a flint tube housing a bias spring can be releasably fastened without the use of tools by turning the closure member from a release position into a locking position.

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MAR 77/V GR dim/BA CHER By M ATTORNE r5 PATENTEDJUN 82971 3583850 saw 3 OF 6 Inventor:

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FLINT HOLDER ASSEMBLY FOR LIGHTER The invention relates to a flint holder assembly for a lighter for cigarettes, cigars, pipes, etc. and particularly to an assembly for closing or opening the flint tube of the lighter without requiring the use of tools.

BACKGROUND There are known flint tube closure assemblies of the general kind above referred to. For instance, there is known a closure assembly in which the closure member proper has a pin with two oppositely disposed noses engageable with correspondingly shaped and located shoulders or recesses within the flint tube. It has been found that accurate machining of such receiving shoulders or recesses within the flint tube is difficult and thus expensive.

THE INVENTION It is a broad object of the invention to provide a novel and improved flint holder assembly of the general kind above referred to which can be inexpensively manufactured by conventional mass production techniques as only machining on the outside of the flint tube is necessary and which can be attached to a closure member or detached therefrom without requiring the use oftools. Machining on the outside of the flint tube is obviously much simpler and less expensive than producing accurate recesses within the flint tube.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved flint holder assembly in which a closure member as customarily used for closing or uncovering a casing opening to insert a flint is releasably attachable to the tube for holding and guiding the flint and the bias spring therefor.

Another more specific object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved flint holder assembly the closure member of which is a one-piece plastic body preferably produced by injection molding.

In the accompanying drawings several preferred embodiments of the invention are shown by way of illustration and not by way of limitation.

In the drawings:

FIG. I is a sectional elevational view of the closure member of the flint holder assembly;

FIG. 2 is a top view of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a bottom view of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an elevational sectional view of a modification of the closure member;

FIG. 5 is a top view of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a bottom view of FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary elevational view of the flint tube of the flint holder assembly, the left side of the figure being shown in view and the right side in section;

FIG. 8 is a section taken on line 8-8 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIG. 7 but lengthwise turned through an angle of 90;

FIG. 10 is a section taken on line 10-10 of FIG. 9;

FIG. II is an elevational sectional view of a flint holder assembly installed in a cigarette lighter;

FIG. 12 is a fragmentary perspective view of a flint tube; and

FIG. I3 is a perspective view of a modification of the closure member with the bias spring for biasing the flint fitted in the flint tube attached thereto.

Referring now to the figures more in detail, FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 exemplify a closure member I of the flint holder assembly. As shown in the figures, member I is a one-piece member made of a suitable plastic produced preferably by injection molding. The closure member is formed with a comparatively long guide pin 2 rising therefrom for supporting and guiding a bias spring 25 as shown in FIG. 13. The spring serves to press the flint 26 proper against a conventional sparking wheel 27 via a cylindrical pressure member 28 as is shown in FIG. 11. The length of pin 2 is such that it accommodates a number of turns of spring 25. The end portion 2a of the pin is outwardly tapered so that it tends to retain the spring when the same is forced upon the conical portion 2 of the pin.

The bottom side of the closure member, that is, the side thereof facing outwardly when the closure member is fitted into a lighter casing 31 (FIG. II), is preferably formed with straight corrugations 30 to facilitate turning of the closure member by finger pressure when the same is inserted into casing 31 or removed therefrom.

As can best be seen in FIGS. 1 and 2 the closure member is formed with a crosswise cutout or recess lb from which extend lateral recesses 3. When seen from the top, recesses 3 define sections of a circle subtended by flat surfaces. The remaining annular wall portion 4'has a surface which faces inwardly when the closure member is installed and is horizontally disposed. As is now evident, recesses 3 constitute undercuts the radial depth and axial height of which are such that they can accommodate the foot of a flint tube as will be more fully described hereinafter.

Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 5, these figures show a closure member la which is similar to the closure member of FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 except that it is made of metal and that its pin 2 is not integral with the body of the closure member but secured thereto. For this purpose, the lower end face of the pin is recessed at 32 to form thin wall portions 33 by means of which the pin is swaged within an opening 34 of the closure member. Other fastening means for securing the pin to closure member Ia may, of course, be used within the scope of the invention. The pin preferably has a circumferential groove 2b to facilitate retention of the bias spring.

In contradistinction to the closure member of FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, the closure member of FIGS. 4 and 5 does not have a continuous annular wall portion 4 but cut out lb extends across the entire width of the closure member as is clearly shown in FIG. 5. Such cut out can be milled in one operation.

The bottom side of the closure member, that is, the outside surface thereof is also formed with straight corrugations 30 to facilitate turning of the closure member.

Both exemplifications of the closure member as hereinbefore described can coact with a flint tube 9 as shown in FIGS. 7 to 10.

As shown in FIGS. 7 to 10 the part of the flint tube to be attached to the respective closure member ends in a foot formed with a peripheral recess 5 defining a flange 6 with two op-.

positely disposed mutually parallel flat sides 7. The diameter and the axial length of recess 5 and the shape of flange 6 are correlated with the dimensions of either closure member so that the closure member can be pushed upon the foot of the flint tube against the action of a spring 25 on pin 2 and more specifically so that the flattened flange 6 can be fitted into the groove lb of the closure member whereby upon turning of the closure member in reference to the flint tube the respective portions of flange 6 will enter undercuts 3 and underlie overhanging wall 4 thus securing the closure member to the flint tube.

As is evident from the previous description, the compres' sion of spring 25 due to the insertion of the flint tube into the crosswise recess lb secures the tube in position on the closure member.

Release of the closure member is effected by turning the same in opposite direction.

As is also shown in FIGS. 7 to 10, the foot of the flint tube 9 may be formed with lips 8 which extend crosswise of flattened surfaces 7 and mutually parallel to each other. These lips 8 serve as abutments to secure the closure member in its position locked to the flint tube and to retain the same in a definite position. As is apparent, the vertical surfaces of lips 8 engage the corresponding vertical surfaces of wall portion 4 of the closure member.

The lips are not basically necessary for the purpose of the invention as bias spring 25 will retain the closure member in any angular position thereof in which flange 6 underlies the respective wall portion 4 of the closure member and protrudes into the undercuts 3.

The shape of the cut outs in the closure member and the flattened wall portions on the flint tube can be changed without departing from. the scope of the invention. It is merely essential that there are sufficiently large surfaces on the closure member and the flint tube which can be brought into underlying engagement with each other and constitute abutment surfaces. As explained before, the closure member is retained by the action of spring 25 in any locking position into which it 5 is turned from the outside of the lighter casing.

As also previously pointed out the essential concept of the invention resides in designing the closure member as a receiving or female part for the flint tube as only by such structure the desired saving in space and reduction in manufacturing costs are obtained.

FIG. 11 shows very clearly how flange 6 underlies the inwardly turned wall portion 4 of closure member 1 thus retaining flint tube 9 in position. This figure also shows the manner in which the flint holder assembly coacts with sparking wheel 27. Operation of the sparking wheel as such does not constitute part of the invention and is, hence, not described.

FIGS. 12 and 13 show how the flint tube 9 and the closure What I claim is: l. A flint holder assembly for a lighter comprising in combination:

a lighter casing having in one of its walls an opening for passage of a flint holding and guiding tube;

a closure member for releasably closing said opening, said closure member including a receiving means on its in wardly facing side; and

a flint holding and guiding tube having on one end an engaging means rotatably receivable in said receiving means, said engaging means being in locking engagement with the receiving means in one predetermined angular posi tion and released therefrom in another predetermined angular position, said closure member having in one of its walls a recess for receiving therein said one end of the flint tube, at least one of the wall portions of the closure member defining said recess including an undercut, and said engaging means having at least one laterally protruding extension, said extension being insertable into said recess in the one predetermined angular position of the closure member with reference to the flint tube and engaging said undercut in the other predetermined angular position of the closure member thereby releasably locking the same to the flint tube.

2. The flint holder assembly according to claim I wherein spring means supported by said closure member bias said flint tube extension in the locking position thereof against the respective wall portion of the closure member to retain the flint tube in the locking position.

3. The flint holder assembly according to claim 1 wherein said closure member comprises a generally cylindrical body having said recess across one of its end faces, the undercut in the respective boundary wall of the recess having a radial base concavely curved with respect to the recess and wherein said one end of the flint tube terminates in a foot having two sidewalls fitting the cross section of the recess for inserting the foot into the same and a further sidewall defining said extension, the outer edge of said extension matching said curvature to permit turning of the foot within the recess into angular position in which said extension protrudes into said undercut.

4. The flint holder assembly according to claim 1 wherein a pin protruding from the base of the recess in the closure member extends within said flint tube, and wherein a coil spring encompassing said pin abuts on one end against the closure member, the other end ofthe spring being adapted to bias a flint in the tube against a sparking wheel.

5. The flint holder assembly according to claim 4 wherein said closure member and the pin protruding therefrom are a one-piecefplastic body. I

6. The |nt holder assembly according to claim 4 wherein said closure member has in the base of said recess an opening therethrough and said pin is secured on one end in said opening.

7. The flint holder assembly according to claim 1 wherein said flint tube has at least one further lateral extension engageable with a further undercut in the closure member. 

1. A flint holder assembly for a lighter comprising in combination: a lighter casing having in one of its walls an opening for passage of a flint holding and guiding tube; a closure member for releasably closing said opening, said closure member including a receiving means on its inwardly facing side; and a flint holding and guiding tube having on one end an engaging means rotatably receivable in said receiving means, said engaging means being in locking engagement with the receiving means in one predetermined angular position and released therefrom in another predetermined angular position, said closure member having in one of its walls a recess for receiving therein said one end of the flint tube, at least one of the wall portions of the closure member defining said recess including an undercut, and said engaging means having at least one laterally protruding extension, said extension being insertable into said recess in the one predetermined angular position of the closure member with reference to the flint tube and engaging said undercut in the other predetermined angular position of the closure member thereby releasably locking the same to the flint tube.
 2. The flint holder assembly according to claim 1 wherein spring means supported by said closure member bias said flint tube extension in the locking position thereof against the respective wall portion of the closure member to retain the flint tube in the locking position.
 3. The flint holder assembly according to claim 1 wherein said closure member comprises a generally cylindrical body having said recess across one of its end faces, the undercut in the respective boundary wall Of the recess having a radial base concavely curved with respect to the recess and wherein said one end of the flint tube terminates in a foot having two sidewalls fitting the cross section of the recess for inserting the foot into the same and a further sidewall defining said extension, the outer edge of said extension matching said curvature to permit turning of the foot within the recess into angular position in which said extension protrudes into said undercut.
 4. The flint holder assembly according to claim 1 wherein a pin protruding from the base of the recess in the closure member extends within said flint tube, and wherein a coil spring encompassing said pin abuts on one end against the closure member, the other end of the spring being adapted to bias a flint in the tube against a sparking wheel.
 5. The flint holder assembly according to claim 4 wherein said closure member and the pin protruding therefrom are a one-piece plastic body.
 6. The flint holder assembly according to claim 4 wherein said closure member has in the base of said recess an opening therethrough and said pin is secured on one end in said opening.
 7. The flint holder assembly according to claim 1 wherein said flint tube has at least one further lateral extension engageable with a further undercut in the closure member. 